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Marc Lawrence

Marc Lawrence has authored thousands of articles expounding on the three primary forms of sports handicapping: Fundamental, Statistical and Technical. To be a successful handicapper, blending all three forms of analysis into the handicapping equation. Marc relies heavily on a proprietary powerful database of scores, stats and results of games played since 1980, both College and Pro Football and College and Pro Basketball.

Marc has been handicapping sports professionally since 1975, having won more documented Top 10 Handicapping Achievement awards than any handicapper in the nation. He won the 2005 STARDUST FOOTBALL INVITATIONAL Contest and was a SEMI-FINALIST in the 2006 $100,000 LEROYS' MONEY TALKS Contest last season. He finished the 2006 season as the No. 1 handicapper in the NFL as documented by SPORTS WATCH in Las Vegas. Marc also finished No. 1 in the nation in College Football win percentage in 2005 as documented by both the SPORTS MONITOR in Oklahoma and SPORTS WATCH in Las Vegas. He was named HANDICAPPER OF THE YEAR in 2005 by FOOTBALL NEWS.

In 2008, he finished No. 1 in NFL win percentage according to SPORTS WATCH and also captured 1st place honors in the 2008 PLAYBOOK WISE GUYS CONTEST.

Marc has hosted a national radio show "MARC LAWRENCE AGAINST THE SPREAD" for each of the last 16 years on over 100 stations syndicated in the USA. He is a tireless handicapper who works a minimum 60-hour week during the football and basketball seasons. As a handicapper he firmly believes that three things can happen when you bet an underdog, and two of them are good. He enjoys helping others to become better informed.

Marc married his high school sweetheart 40 years ago and has one son, Marc Jr., who works with him in the industry. Aside from publishing the PLAYBOOK Football Yearbook magazine and Weekly Newsletters, Marc enjoys golf and horse racing.

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Thursday, December 08, 2016

Marc Lawrence Best NFL Upsets, Dec.10-11

New Orleans over Tampa by 11

Don’t look now but the Bucs have reeled off four straight wins – all as underdogs – and suddenly fi nd themselves tied atop the NFC South with the Atlanta Falcons, two full games ahead of the visiting Saints. They’ll need their best effort of the season today, though, as New Orleans enjoys playing here, winning six of its last seven visits while bagging the cash in each of its last six roles as a road puppy. The tall task for Tampa is that there have been only 16 teams in the NFL to win four consecutive games as an underdog since 1980. Those teams went 5-11 SU and 5-10-1 in follow up contests. The really bad news is the Bucs are 1-7 ATS in 2nd to Last Home Games of the seasons the past eight years, not to mention QB Jameis Winston was 0-4 SUATS in his fi nal four games of the season last year. With New Orleans in survival mode, and QB Drew Brees 20-5 ATS as a dog against foes off consecutive wins in his NFL career, we’re once again all over the boys from Bourbon Street like ants on an uncovered beignet. With that, here’s THE CLINCHER: Over the last fi ve seasons, NFL teams with 1st-year head coaches (read: Tampa Bay’s Dirk Koetter) are 12-18 SU and 5-23-2 ATS as home favorites following a SU underdog win, including 1-12-1 ATS from Game Ten out.

Arizona Over Miami by 11

If Bud Collyer of ‘To Tell The Truth’ fame were still alive today, we could see him replacing Jimmy Cefalo as the Miami play-by-play man. Who else better to say, “Will the real Dolphins please stand up?” After reeling off six straight wins (following a 1-4 start), the Fish hit Baltimore disguised as the Browns and promptly dropped a 38-6 decision. They now face a 5-6-1 Arizona squad that has no margin for error if they hope to cash a postseason check for the third straight season. And though HC Bruce Arians has failed three times in this role already this year, he was 14-1 ATS as an underdog of 4 or less points in his NFL career entering this season. Well, we say the fourth time is a charm and for good reason: not only are the Dolphins 1-9 ATS at home versus losing NFC opposition, they are 5-12-2 ATS as home favorites versus the NFC West. Our MIDWEEK ALERT also points out that these ‘phony’ Fish are 1-4 ‘ITS’ over its last fi ve contests. ‘To Tell the Truth’ – this week’s INCREDIBLE STAT on page 2 is also THE CLINCHER: Miami is 1-11-1 ATS at home versus losing opponents off a SU win.

Written by Marc Lawrence

Marc Lawrence can also be found at Playbook.com - One Click Handicapping

Wednesday, November 30, 2016

Marc Lawrence NFL Best Bets Dec. 4

Miami by 6 over BALTIMORE

First off, let’s set the table: if the NFL Playoffs started this week it would be the 3rd seeded Ravens and the 6th seeded Dolphins all set to go. The Fish enter today’s fray as one of the hottest teams in the league, winners of six straight games following a disastrous 1-4 start to the season under 1st-year head coach Adam Gase. It’s no coincidence that Miami has committed only TWO turnovers during its 6-game win skein, while winning four of the games straight-up as underdogs. Meanwhile, Miami takes a 5-1 ATS record in its last six games played in Baltimore, while the Ravens are 0-5 ATS the
last five years in their seventh home game of the season. Baltimore QB Joe Flacco joins the party, going 3-13 ATS in his last 16 starts during the month of December, including 0-8 ATS as a favorite. The final icing in the cake comes from THE CLINCHER: NFL teams riding a 6-game-exact win streak into Game Twelve of the season are 9-2 ATS off a win of 21 or fewer points since 1980, including 7-0 ATS if they scored less than 35 points in their last game.

NEW ORLEANS over Detroit by 15

Let’s cut right to the chase… for the most part NFL teams generally suck in post-Thanksgiving day affairs, especially the Lions who are 3-17 SU (1-4 ATS the last five) following Thanksgiving Day games the last 20 years. That works like a charm into a red-hot Saints’ squad that is playing its best ball of the season, going 5-3 SU and 7-1 ATS, after starting the year 0-3. Along the way, the Who Dats have out-yarded all seven foes since their bye week. N’Awlins has also bagged the cash in five of the last six games in
this series. And did we mention the Saints are 7-0 ATS at home off a home game, which fits like a training bra at a Heidi Klum newbies runway show next to Detroit’s 1-7 ATS mark in road games following consecutive homers. And chew on this, if you would: if the NFL playoffs started this week the Lions would be in and the Saints would be out. Finally, we’d be remiss if we didn’t call out THE CLINCHER: See this week’s AWESOME ANGLE on page 2.

Written by Marc Lawrence

Marc Lawrence can also be found at Playbook.com - One Click Handicapping

Wednesday, November 23, 2016

College & Pro Best Bewt Upsets Nov 24-27

MINNY over Detroit by 7

A feast of football kicks off Thanksgiving Day in the Motor City where the Detroit Lions host the Minnesota Vikings in a battle for fi rst place in the NFC North at Ford Field. The Lions have long been a staple on Turkey Day where they play their 77th game on this celebratory day, standing 36-38-2 SU in previous games, but 3-0 SUATS the last three years. The Jungle Kings are also 9-3 SUATS in this series following consecutive wins, including 7-0 SU and 6-1 ATS at home. Today, though, the revitalized Vikings enter 4-1 SUATS on Thanksgiving Thursday with a sparkling 11-0 ATS record following home games versus opponents off a home game. They have also held four foes to season-low yards this season. Detroit’s 1-6 mark ‘In The Stats’ in its last seven games seals the deal as we have ourselves a live division dog to sink our teeth into on this festive holiday. Pass the gravy and grab the points. And check out THE CLINCHER: QB Sam Bradford owns a 10-4 ATS career mark as a dog in division games, including 8-1 ATS the last nine, and 5-0 ATS against foes off back-to-back wins.

VANDY over Tennessee by 6

Wondering if the Volunteers can get up for this one after Florida stole the SEC East title right from under their noses? Not this schizophrenic bunch. Like James Caan trapped in a bed by Kathy Bates in ‘Misery’, it’s been downright torture trying to keep up with Tennessee this season. The Vols’ don’t get much support in today’s battle for the state championship, posting a poor 8-17 ATS record as favorites of 5 or more points against foes off a SUATS win. They also find themselves playing a rivalry dog with double revenge in this series. With Vanderbilt making one last-ditch effort to bag win No. 6 tonight in Nashville, we like the looks of the Commodores’ 9-3 ATS record as home dogs with revenge. And with Thanksgiving just days away, our SMART BOX is all over the 5-win Commies like whipped cream on pumpkin pie. Simply put, we’re going hard with the guys who still have something to play for against one that’s not sure what day it is. THE CLINCHER: Vanderbilt is 13-5 ATS as a dog of more than 6 points under head coach Derek Mason, including 5-0 ATS this season.

Toledo over W MICHIGAN by 1

If College GameDay were in Kalamazoo this week instead of last Saturday, we would advise Coach Corso to don the Toledo headwear. Of course, last week’s pick was a no-brainer as the Broncos hosted hapless Buffalo, but this Friday could be a different story as the battle for the MAC West crown comes with a noose big enough to fi t Brian Windhorst’s neck. As it is, the underdog Rockets – who are already playing with revenge from a season-finale home loss last year – are a ‘Puttin’ On The Stats’ SMART BOX play as they are 10-1 ‘ITS’ this season. They’re also 5-0 ATS after tangling with Ball State and 4-1 ATS in LRGs. In addition, Toledo is 17-3 SU in this matchup when they own a .400 or greater record while the series dog is a Pit bull-like 9-1 ATS. Meanwhile, the undefeated Broncos can taste a New Year’s Six Bowl but must first deal with a 0-6 ATS log after battling Buffalo, a 0-4 ATS record in LHGs and a 3-7 ATS mark in the second of back-to-back homers. THE CLINCHER: the Rockets are 7-0-1 ATS in their last eight weekday road games.

Arizona over Atlanta by 8

Much like grains of sand in an hourglass, there is only so much time for disappointing quality teams to get their act together before it’s too late. Meet the Arizona Cardinals, the choice of many pundits to win the NFC West this season. Currently 3 games back of frontrunning Seattle, the Red Birds will most likely secure a spot in the playoffs – if they’re fortunate – via the Wild Card. To do so, a win today is mandatory. And behind the top-ranked defense in the league, we like their chances. For openers, the underdog is 21-5 ATS in Falcons games under Dan Quinn. In addition, Atlanta is 1-6 ATS at home with rest in non-division games. With ‘Zona sporting nearly 100 yards the better defense in this bout, we turn to THE CLINCHER: Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians is 22-6 SU and 20-8 ATS in non-division regular season games following a non-division game, including 6-1 SU and 7-0 ATS from Game 11 out.

Written by Marc Lawrence

Marc Lawrence can also be found at Playbook.com - One Click Handicapping